


real

by miraclemin



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: M/M, Single Father Chanyeol, all other members are mentioned fleetingly, chanyeol is a phoenix, idol!chanyeol, industry fic, mentions of Minho, metaphorically
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-15
Updated: 2017-09-15
Packaged: 2018-12-30 01:51:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12098097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miraclemin/pseuds/miraclemin
Summary: When you help people fake things for a living, it's rare to find someone who's genuine enough to get through the barriers you set up. Helping someone stop crying before their big comeback is something Jongdae's does every two months but for some reason this time is different. But he's not going to stop doing his job.





	real

**Author's Note:**

> FIRST OFF! A big thank you to the mods who listened and worked with me when life got in the way of this fic. Less of a thank you to my brain for deciding to rewrite it last minute. Another thanks to Jongdae and Chanyeol for being such loving souls, writing their warmth is one of my favorite things to do. Finally, thank you to all the people who will read this. I'll stop yammering and I hope you all enjoy the fic.

Kim Jongdae lives a fast paced life.

Which is why it’s nice when he’s able drop his keys into the bowl on his side table when he gets home from work. It’s that final full stop, signalling the end of another hectic day and the start of...well the rest of his day that isn’t too hectic. 

He breathes in deep, leaning his head back to hit the hardwood of his door. For a second his brain tempts him with the prospects of over thinking every single thing he said today, but a loud shriek chases away any thoughts of that. Checking would be the neighbourly thing to do but then again, being neighbourly can be oh so tiring.

Jongdae pushes away from the door, drops his bag in the doorway of his bedroom and continues on to fall face first on to his couch. He can be neighbourly tomorrow.

-

One of the best things to smell at seven in the morning was someone’s armpit. Trying to not breathe too deep but also wanting to sigh at the same time, Jongdae turns his head, fixing his eyes on an ad plastered along the panelling close to the ceiling of the train.

It’s one of his. Well, he didn’t design it (it’s too stereotypical for his liking) but he worked on it.

Seolhyun watches his carefully, holding a sprite can close to her face. She’s smiling the smile he’d shown her and her eyes are sparkly just right because he’d set up the lights just right. For all intents and purposes, it could easily be him posing and there’d be nothing different about the composition. “Tch. Except there would be.” He grumbles, tucking his head against his outstretched arm. The shake of the carriage forces him to sway and he catches the side of the man whose armpit he’d had the privilege of smelling moments earlier.

Unsurprisingly, the man thinks he’s got the right to give Jongdae a dirty look, like he enjoys accidentally diving head first into older men’s armpits. Each to their own, but it’s not Jongdae’s bag. “Sorry _ahjussi_.” He whispers, twisting til he’s facing the pregnant woman he gave his seat up for. There’s a sheen of sweat on her face that makes him wonder if all pregnant women are meant to look like that or if he’s going to have to send her off to accident and emergency. “Are you alright miss?” he leans down, but not too much because that would definitely be condescending.

She nods, turning it into a gesture to her sweater. “I’m just a little hot. I thought it would be colder this morning.” Which is a relief, and Jongdae makes it known by leaning back and nodding in turn. He doesn’t say anymore because he’s pretty sure everyone’s ideal subway ride is a silent one -- that’s why the silent carriages fill up so quickly.

His stop is coming up, all Jongdae needs to do is make it through the next couple of minutes then he’ll be able to get out of this sweaty hellhole to another type of hellhole.

-

Getting called up to the boss first thing is really, just the icing on top of the cake that has been Jongdae’s morning. Hayi is watching him carefully as he comes in, though doesn’t give up the chance to rearrange her pencils as he does. “You’re late.” she says. Which is fair, technically Jongdae was called up here ten minutes ago and it only takes five minutes at a full on sprint, so he’s definitely five minutes late. Dutifully, he nods. She clears her throat. “But I also heard the crash of the stationary cart...so we’ll say I called you in five minutes ago.” Her smile is wide and for a moment Jongdae feels like he could punch her arm and call her one of his mates. But that’s gone pretty quickly because Hayi scares the shit out of him and it’s kind of awesome. He’s not gonna fuck with that.

“Thank you Boss.” Jongdae tucks his chin close to his chest. “Can I ask why I was called up? I have a meeting for the CUBE portfolio in an hour, there’s still a few composites I need to pull together.” he explains. Broaching subjects with his boss had never been his favourite thing to do.

“You’re not on the CUBE portfolio anymore Jongdae, I moved you to the SM one. They’ve resigned someone pretty big and they wanted some of our...well they used ‘experienced but fresh’ talent on it. I figured you’d be best suited to cover their needs.” Which, holy shit that’s some pretty damn high levels of praise. Even if it comes at the expense of all the work he’d put into the designs for CUBE, Jongdae’s not going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Breathing deep, Jongdae does his best at keeping his smile muted and professional. “Thank you Boss, I won’t let you down.” For good measure, he bows.

Hayi matches his gaze when he straightens up, a small smile of her own pulling her mouth up on one side. “You best not. Wouldn’t be a good look for me _or_ the agency.” she says softly. There’s warning hinting at the edge of her voice but mostly, she just sounds happy for him.

As Jongdae lets the door to Hayi’s office close behind him, the frosted glass slipping out of his finger tips, and watches the generally organised chaos of bureaucracy, he whispers one thing to himself. “God, I love my job.”

Whether he’s still telling himself that when he has to explain to a fried looking Minseok that he’s moving accounts...well it’s hard to say. Especially when an even tireder looking Kyungsoo comes in holding a bag of bubble tea, only for the bottom to go and for the tea to end up all over the floor. Yes, these things were what really tested Jongdae’s patience -- and he’d not even met up with PR for SM yet.

-

Jongin is the name of the boy who greeted him as he stepped through the building’s doors. Usually the foyer is bustling with different people sending memos and carrying varyings sizes of coffee orders. Now? It’s desolate, with a few people skirting the edges of the space as Jongdae steps up to the admin desk. “Hello, I’m Kim Jong-”

He doesn’t get a chance to finish his sentence before Jongin (he’s wearing a name badge) jumps in with a warm, if not slightly stressed, “I’m just an intern so please don’t get upset if I accidentally take you to the wrong department! I got lost on the way to the toilet yesterday.” Ah. Jongdae nods.

“I’ve been here before, I can find the marketing department by myself if you want to just stay here.” he gets up on his tip toes. “It looks like you’re doing a tonne of paperwork anyway. It’s not a stress.” Jongdae adds, smiling softly as he matches his gaze with frazzled Jongin.

The intern doesn’t look like he’s going to budge though, “Mr Kim said I have to take everyone who’s got an appointment to it, like waiting on them and stuff.” Jongin looks like he’s about two seconds away from wringing his goddamn hands so, Jongdae caves.

Nodding, “Sure thing Kim Jongin. I’ve got an appointment at the marketing department with Mr Kim? The artistic director?” With the prompt, Jongin jumps down from the tall chair he’d been given to see over the desk. He’s the same height when he’s standing and frankly, it’s got Jongdae feeling some kind of way that’s not annoyed. He pushes whatever’s welling in his stomach to the side and watches Jongin intently as he comes around to start herding him.

He tries briefly to make some conversation with Jongin but it falls flat when Jongin says he doesn’t know what the weather's like outside because he’s not been out there since the sun was up. Which, fair enough, that’s what winter is like in Seoul. Get to work early to earn brownie points with the boss and miss the sunrise -- a trade off Jongdae’s glad he doesn’t have to make anymore.

When they get to Junmyeon’s office, Jongin stands awkwardly by one of the chairs outside awkwardly until Jongdae sits. “You did good Jongin.” Jongdae says softly, broaching the silence carefully. He’s not really sure why the guy’s still standing there but then again, sometimes you get a little lost in the sauce.

Jongin starts a little, the awkward laugh coming soon after. “Sorry Jongdae, I um, was just trying to remember where I gotta go next. I’m sort of new to the whole having to be multiple places at once thing y’know?” _Oh_. Jongdae smiles.

He totally gets it, had taken almost all his first internship to get used to it. “It’s hard isn’t it?” he pauses to give Jongin time to nod before continuing. “But don’t worry, it evens out as you go. You get on a roll. Minho’s a good guy though, if you’re ever having trouble or anything keeping it together during the day he’ll be happy to help.” he explains, leaning back in the chair, neck almost craning so their eyes can meet.

The smile he gets in return is happy, filled with the relief that comes along with finding someone who _gets_ it. “Thanks Jongdae, I needed that. I hope your meeting with Junmyeon goes well.” He doesn’t hang around much after he says that, nodding in lieu of a bow and heading back to his station at the front desk.

Ten minutes later and Junmyeon’s shown up. Time to get this portfolio switch underway.

-

“Alright Henry, Soojung is just over there with all the outfits. Order of wear is from left to right. If you need to run through it again, Soojung’ll be happy to help.” he explains, plucking the used water bottle from his hands. He drops the water bottle in the bin that’s tucked under the counter, lamenting the fact that Henry can’t seem to even find that

Kyungsoo had called late last night and asked for Jongdae to cover for him. Something about not being able to get out of bed because he was so sick. He’d not let his colleague finish his explanation for two reasons. 1) It’s Kyungsoo, he’s not going to lie and 2) It’s Kyungsoo, Jongdae would probably cover for him if he just wanted a day off.

Besides it had been a good enough chance to give Junmyeon a call and work Chanyeol into the show.

Chanyeol, he’s the guy he’d had the meeting with Junmyeon about two days ago. Technically not new to the industry, actually he’s kind of a veteran, SM had resigned with him after about six years of him being out of contract. Really, that was the only reason Jongdae was willing to potentially fuck up the work Kyungsoo had put into the Balmain portfolio.

He’d gotten permission from Kyungsoo but the rambling message his friend had sent in reply to his text made Jongdae feel like he didn’t really know what was going on. Too bad. Chanyeol was here now, in the make-up chair, to be exact.

Baekhyun had nearly fainted when Jongdae had planted him at Chanyeol’s station and told him what the go was. “PARK CHANYEOL?” he’d exclaimed, kind of like that girl whom Jongdae identified greatly with who said ‘BeYONCÉ’ on that tv show once. 

They’ve got t-minus ten minutes until the show starts which frankly, Jongdae’s pretty sure they’re not going to be able to get all the shit they need done in but hey, that’s the nature of show biz. You learn how to cram twenty minutes of work into ten. “ALRIGHT WHO HERE HAS THEIR MAKE-UP DONE?” About four models put up their hands, and one of the guys who does it definitely doesn’t have makeup on at all. Jongdae raises a brow and the guy who definitely doesn’t have makeup on lowers his hand. “RIGHT. I WANT YOU IN YOUR OUTFITS AND IF YOU ALREADY ARE, GET BY THE STARTING DOOR.” Two of the models peel off to the door and the last one with makeup but no outfit heads over to Soojung.

There’s about four other models looking at him blankly. Getting up on his tip toes Jongdae raises his hands in question to the group. “What are you waiting for? I want someone in every make-up seat and those who aren’t to be getting into their allocated outfits. We are on a time limit people!” His words appear to do their job because everyone’s soon scuttling off to their designated station.

Once they get the steady flow of people from the make-up desks to either the side door or to the clothing section again, Jongdae’s able to breathe a little easier, shifting back to his usual role of tending to individual model’s needs. On a bee-line to a guy who looks like he’s about to start crying, a hand catches his wrist. “Wah, Jongdae I didn’t know you were so good at being bossy. It’s kinda hot.” Minseok’s voice is a refreshing sound in the swirl of unfamiliar ones.

Jongdae groans, “It feels so weird when you say stuff at work like that _hyung_.” he reminds him. “I should go talk to that person though, it’s best to not have people breaking down in the middle of the operation.” he explains, jerking his head back in a vague gesture, hoping he’s still in the same spot since there’s no way he’d be able to find him if he moved.

“Go talk to him, then you might wanna get back to Henry, he was complaining about having to work with Taeil.” Jongdae nods but it’s one of those _fuck-I-really-don’t-wanna-do-that_ nods.

Once he gets a little closer to the guy by the back wall, he realises it’s Chanyeol. He should have known from the height the dude’s packing. “Chanyeol?” he asks softly, hand rising to squeeze gently on his upper arm. The model/singer/actor, whatever else the fuck his contract said is still in the clothes he came to the centre in, which fine, comfy, but also not fine. “You alright?” Jongdae adds, hoping that more than just a name would coax something out of the model. 

“I-” Chanyeol hiccoughs, and Jongdae knows exactly how squished up and ever expanding his chest must feel right now. Like it’s too small but too big at the same time. Anxiety has her ways. “I’m worried about falling down. This is my first thing in the spotlight in a while. What if I fuck it up?” Before Jongdae to can cut in with an assurance that Chanyeol’s definitely not going to fuck this up, the man’s eyes are going wide. “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to swear, I’m just nervous.”

Jongdae understands, and he says as much, smoothing his hand over Chanyeol’s decently sized bicep. “You’ll finish your walk and you’ll get back here all in one piece, even if you do fall down. Everyone in the crowd will think you’re cool too. You have to be cool to be up on that stage anyway.” Their eyes meet for the first time and there’s a little warmth in them. “Are you alright?” he asks finally, voice soft, eyes softer. The nod this time is fuller, more complete and Jongdae nods back. “You got this.” he whispers before stepping back to allow him into the fold, watching his back disappear after he returns his look with a small smile of his own.

-

It’s _way_ earlier than Jongdae is used to being upright and walking but he’d gotten a call from Jongin, of all people, saying that Junmyeon had had a cancelled appointment. “He’s hoping that you could come in and go over the proper start of Chanyeol’s reintroduction to the public eye.” Jongdae had groaned out a reply in the affirmative before hanging up. At least the boss was in at the same time as the intern.

There’s a little girl sprinting past him on the stairs when Jongdae heads down to the footpath, looking to catch a cab into the office. “Look daddy! I beat you and Seongjin!” She squeals up to, presumably, her father still at the top of the stairs. Jongdae gives her a warm smile when her eye catches his but doesn’t bother following her gaze. If they’re neighbours, they’re bound to meet at some point anyway, and he’s in a rush right now.

A voice that Jongdae’s pretty sure he knows but can’t quite place bellows something down the stairwell but Jongdae’s already got a foot in his taxi.

-

When Jongdae rocks up to Junmyeon’s office in the SM building, he’s not expecting to see Park Chanyeol sitting in there alone. Which is exactly why he bursts in with, “So I was thinking we start off with easing him into the public eye, a runway here, a music video feature her-” he falls quiet when he spots a crop of ebony hair rather than Junmyeon’s dulcet brown.

“I told Yixing that I wouldn’t be having a big comeback.” Chanyeol says, already rising from where he sits, back to Jongdae. When he turns around his face is pulled into a broad smile, which is at least comforting. Chanyeol scrunches his nose up, and with it his eyebrows too. “It’s a shame though, he had some pretty cool sound effects and trumpet-y music. I liked it.” Jongdae can’t tell if he’s joking or not.

Opening his mouth to ask, Jongdae’s cut off when Junmyeon walks in and almost immediately bumps into him. It’s not so much the impact of Junmyeon but the door hitting Jongdae’s back that propels him forward and off his feet.

One, two steps and he finally gives into the reality that he’s going to fall.

But then he doesn’t. Something flips him over so his vision is filled with the ceiling rather than the floor. “You know, even if you’re not giving me a big ‘nd epic comeback…” an upside down Chanyeol trails off, smile quirking on the right side. “...I guess you don’t deserve to fall flat on your… _dashingly_ handsome face.” Jongdae _still_ can’t tell if he’s joking or not. If this pattern keeps going, Jongdae’s going to have a real hard time working with Chanyeol. 

It takes Chanyeol putting him back on his feet for Jongdae to bite back a demand to be put on his feet or so help him god. There may have been threats relating to height and relative ability to murder someone that were saved for another time -- also a little swooning. “Thank you for catching me Mr Park.” he eventually decides upon, sapping any possible indignation from his voice before speaking.

At this point, Junmyeon tries to interject, most likely with an apology but Chanyeol cuts in with a warm, “Of course Mr Kim.” and an equally sunny smile. Ironic considering how dreary it had been when he’d been walking that last little bit of the way to the building -- his taxi driver had said it wasn’t worth his while to go the whole way.

“Sorry, Jongdae!” Junmyeon finally edges in, laying a hand on Jongdae’s shoulder as he does so.

It’s not a big deal, and Jongdae tells him as so. They’ve got much bigger fish to fry than a door swinging open more than either party had anticipated.

-

It’s when the meeting ends that things get to be really interesting for Jongdae. He couldn’t possibly say anything about the other people in the meeting. If he had to take a stab in the dark, Jongdae’s going to say that Chanyeol’s day was most definitely interesting; Junmyeon too, but with less frequency.

The thing that makes Jongdae’s day interesting happens by the elevator. “Did you want to go and get coffee?” Chanyeol’s bright and big, standing beside Jongdae and casting a light while somehow shielding him from the sunlight pouring in through the window behind him. Being the professional man that Jongdae is, of course he wants coffee, there’s nothing more that he’d like right now. Early morning starts and meetings are always precursor to later morning coffee runs. The only thing stopping him is his bank account.

He’d donated a little money to the drive Sehun had been doing at church to raise money for his international trip. Good cause for sure, he love the dude and he needed the credit for the last part of his degree, but he hadn’t budgeted for it.

Grimacing, Jongdae pulls out his wallet. “I don’t have any money on me.” he explains. For good effect, he adds in a disappointed sound as he slips his wallet back into his pocket. “Sorry Chanyeol, I’d go for one if I could cover it.”

Instead of the disappointment he’s expecting to see, Chanyeol just smiles and pulls out his wallet instead. “Good thing I’m buying then.” he says, with an element of finality Jongdae’s pretty sure means _don’t-question-me_.

The lift clicks and creaks open. Out of respect, Jongdae steps back to let Chanyeol into the lift before him -- it’s the least he can do for someone who’s offering to provide him with sustenance. Though, this offer falls flat on its face when Chanyeol steps back to let Jongdae on first, for whatever reasons. So there they stand for a second, neither of them moving to go into the elevator. Only when to the doors start to jitter closed, does Chanyeol give in, almost bumping his head as he steps in.

Jongdae’s smiling in victory when he catches Chanyeol’s eyes while pressing the buttons telling the machine to take them down to the annex. “Only because you promised big boy. And remember, you can’t break a promise.” he almost lectures, voice stern as he steps back from the panel of buttons.

As the box slowly descends the floors, Jongdae and Chanyeol descend into silence. It’ not the cramped, anxious silence Jongdae is used to when around those whose careers relied on his good execution of his portfolio planning. No, instead it’s that warm silence, that comes when you’ve known someone for a long time. Jongdae’s guessing that the _catching-you-in-my-arms-deal_ sped up the process of that feeling. Or maybe, it’s just Chanyeol. The guy certainly is very...warm.

Jongdae becomes intensely aware of the final fact when the lift reaches the bottom floor. He goes to press the button to open the door, knowing from experience that you barely got enough time for one person to get out, let alone two. Apparently, Chanyeol knows this as well. Their hands brush on the way to the button and Jongdae feels a pulse of heat roll up his arm.

When he looks up to Chanyeol and sees the man’s jovial smile as he steps out of the lift, Jongdae decides the roll of heat is problem for Future Jongdae.

-

Sitting in cafés with the person who’s part of a portfolio he’s managing is not usually Jongdae’s style. It’s very...Minseok -- possibly Baekhyun, but not Jongdae. Still, here he is, hands wrapped around a warm mug of hot chocolate and neck craning so he can hold Chanyeol’s gaze. It’s kind of daunting, being social.

Not that being social is something Jongdae doesn’t like, more he’s worried he’ll mess up and Chanyeol will end up storming out demanding to cancel his company’s contract with Jongdae’s. “So I was thinking we approach Lotte, maybe a chicken joint, gauge their interest in bringing you in for a few advertisements here and there.” Jongdae says, broaching the subject carefully.

It doesn’t go over well. Chanyeol’s eyes squint, and his brows pull together in the middle. Fuck. “You really want to get me back out there don’t you Jongdae?” Which… _not_ the question Jongdae was expecting, but definitely not the worst thing that could come out of Chanyeol’s mouth.

Pursing his lips, Jongdae tries to think of a strategy. He comes up with nothing. “Well, that’s my job isn’t it? Getting you back out there.” That’s the simple thing, the answer that won’t get him in any trouble.

Chanyeol nods as he leans forward to sip his own cup of coffee. “I get the feeling that before you had this job you weren’t big on the entertainment industry.”

He’s not wrong. Jongdae’s much more into the getting shit done aspect of his job. Frankly, he couldn’t give a shit who’s doing what, as long as he delivers on what he promises and the people he’s working for are happy. Sure, there’s the mild attachment where people are nice and all that but nothing major. Nothing that necessitates him searching for gossip on Naver. “I wasn’t big on idols, no.” He admits, but he draws it out. The longer it takes him to say, the longer it is until Chanyeol can get angry at him.

“Heaps of people aren’t Jongdae. Trust me, I know.” And while it feels like it’s meant to be some kind of consolation, Jongdae’s not sure it is. There’s a strange tick of a smile at the corner of Chanyeol’s mouth that makes him feel more like it’s an invitation to a pity party.

A beat passes. In that brief moment, the coffee shop swirls around them, someone drops their cup, the eftpos machine beeps as someone pays. Life goes on -- but Jongdae’s stuck looking at the half hidden smile. “It’s not your fault Chanyeol.” he blurts out. Jongdae feels regret almost immediately. He knows he shouldn’t have mentioned it, even if the information was just a few clicks away and he’s a grown up adult capable of using the internet.

Social etiquette dictated that he shouldn’t. But he still did, and look where that’s gotten him.

“You searched it didn’t you?” Chanyeol’s tone isn’t accusatory, but it’s not lighthearted either. That same weight before still hangs behind his eyes.

Taking a sip of his luke-warm chocolate seems awfully tempting right about now. “I have a job Chanyeol, I need to understand what I’m up against.” Which makes it sound like Jongdae’s definitely more professional than he actually is. Breathing deep, Jongdae tries to pretend that the taste of soju isn’t rising in his throat.

-

"He has kids " Some _soju_ dribbles down Jongdae’s chin and he barely has a chance to catch it before Baekhyun's sliding in at his side again, Jongdae's sure that if he cranes enough he'll be able to see Minseok slotting in on his other side. "Baekhyun did you know he has kids?" He notices that his words don't come out alright but he's too busy frowning at Baekhyun. Squinting at Baekhyun too, he reminds himself that he’s doing that too.

Propping his head on his hand, Jongdae waits for his friend’s response. It’s probably going to be a while because Baekhyun’s definitely just as drunk as Jongdae and with the redness of his lips, he’s probably been making out with Minseok. There's a loud **smack** and it takes Jongdae a second to realise that it’s Minseok’s head hitting the table behind him. “We weren’t making out!” Baekhyun announces when Jongdae looks over his shoulder to squint at Minseok.

Shaking his head, Jongdae waves away the lie. “I asked if you knew Chanyeol-ah had kids.” he repeats, slurring Chanyeol’s name. His cheeks heat up once he realises he’s added the affection marker.

Baekhyun looks Jongdae dead in the eye, holding a shot glass in one hand and the other held aloft in some kind of steadying gesture. He makes some kind of stalling sound. “Yes.”

“Baekhyun!” Jongdae yells. Baekhyun snatches the shot away and downs it before Jongdae has a chance to snatch it back as some form of punishment.

Minseok burps, makes some sort of gurgling sound that would be worrying were it not for the, “It’s okay to find men who have kids attractive Jongdae.”

-

Snapping back from his brain’s little interlude, Jongdae squints through the bright midday sunlight. Chanyeol’s watching him with a thinly veiled curiosity. “You with me Jongdae?” He’s got the feeling that if there was a couple more seconds of delay, Chanyeol probably would have started waving his hand in front of his face.

Jongdae’s glad it didn’t come to that. Yawning, he smiles as he answers. “Yeah my brain just thought now would be a good time to remind me about my last work dinner.” His laugh at the end of the explanation is weak at best.

Mercifully, Chanyeol takes it, nodding and leaning back in his chair. “Those can be pretty rough man. I hope it wasn’t last night? I wouldn’t wanna be keeping you from resting up.” And that’s a considerate callout if Jongdae’s ever heard one.

Sipping his chocolate instead of replying immediately, Jongdae thinks over what to say. Finally, “Can’t imagine you get many opportunities to have work dinners.” He closes his eyes again, knowing he’s managed to put his foot in it almost immediately after recovering from the other thing.

Chanyeol _laughs_ , “Ha, no, that’s true enough. Wouldn’t mind goin’ to one with you there I reckon.” Clearly his surprise shows on his face because Chanyeol leans forward, adding his reasoning, “You sound like you get totally hammered, ‘d be fun.” At least the first part is true.

“Well, I promise to have you home by a family friendly time.” Jongdae says, smiling over his mug. At least his final sip isn’t part of his avoidance technique -- it’s because the drink is ice cold by now. 

The smile he gets isn’t one he’s expecting and there’s a voice that sounds a lot like Minseok’s saying something like _I told you so_ at the back of his brain. “I’ll have to tell Daseul, Daddy found a nice man.” It’s the second time today that Chanyeol’s made Jongdae blush.

-

“Hey Jongdae I just wanted to say thanks, whatever you did at that Balmain show, there’s been like a 20% uptick in engagement on social me-”

“CHANYEOL SAID WHAT TO YOU?” Baekhyun comes skidding around the corner, catching himself on Kyungsoo’s chair when he almost falls down. Jongdae throws an apologetic smile to Kyungsoo for an event in his life leading to interruptions at work.

Considering Jongdae’s at no point let this slip up, Baekhyun’s probably got someone in the café telling him what happened. Either that or it’s ended up splashed all over the headlines. For once, Jongdae’s hoping it’s the former. “He said lots of things to me Baekhyun, what are you hoping to hear specifically?” Playing dumb is the only way Jongdae can stall this and keep the fact that he’s got the subject of one of the company’s biggest portfolios flirting with him.

This doesn’t go down well, Baekhyun’s begun the foot tapping. “The thing right before you two went your separate ways outside the café.” He says pointedly, eyes flicking over to Kyungsoo -- presumably for support. Smartly, Kyungsoo rolls back from where he’d stationed himself beside Jongdae’s desk and slots himself under his desk. Silently.

“See you soon?” Jongdae suggests, turning his attention away from Baekhyun to shuffle some of the papers on his desk.

A huff is initially all he gets in response, then a hand slamming on his desk in a way that’s only _mildly_ threatening. “No, I mean the ‘It’s a date’ part Kim Jongdae. Are you fraternising with our portfolio subject?” His voice rises in pitch, clearly convinced that he’s caught him out and that this is some fresh gossip.

Time to seriously disappoint Byun Baekhyun. “He meant it like, a date to meet up and discuss some work things Baekhyun. I’ve not responded to any of the flirtations he’s made.” Uh oh. Jongdae purses his lips the moment he finishes talking.

It’s Kyungsoo who turns around this time. “He flirted with you?” Fuck. “He probably did mean it as a date then Jongdae, did you agree to it then?” Technically speaking, Jongdae probably wouldn’t change his answer for lots of reasons that can be summarised simply with: Chanyeol’s sweet and attractive. Not that he’s going to admit that.

Gently shoving Kyungsoo’s rolly chair, Jongdae makes his indignance known with a soft whine. “You guys, I wouldn’t ever date someone while we were actively working with them.” he whines, despite all his efforts to remain proper and professional about it.

Minseok rolls out of is office door, “Now as much as I’m into grilling Jongdae about his love life, can we do it in time where Hayi isn’t going to get on my ass?”

With a grumble, Baekhyun tidies up some of the papers Jongdae had been working on before backing out. Kyungsoo rolls back to his desk but not before giving Jongdae one of those _we’re-definitely-talking-about-this-later_ looks. Frankly, Jongdae’s more scared of the kind of retribution Kyungsoo’s likely to deal out than Baekhyun.

Before his brain can think about the kinds of things an angry Do Kyungsoo could do, Jongdae scribbles out a note.

_i put chanyeol in the balmain walk. that’s why the big social engagement, look at the comments_

-

Minho’s waiting for Jongdae when he shows up for the progress meeting with Junmyeon. “Hey Jongdae, how’s your new digs treating you?” He asks as he reaches out to grab Jongdae’s hand to shake it.

Smiling, Jongdae takes it. “Not quite new _hyung_. I’ve been there for a year and a half.” he corrects before pulling his hand away. Red flares right up on his old supervisor’s cheeks at the realisation. “It’s cool Minho, I understand time can kinda slip away from you.” To punctuate his sentence, Jongdae gestures towards the stairs. “Should we get going?” It’s not that he’s in any particular rush, more that he doesn’t want Minho to be able to overthink this anymore than he already has. He knows how his old boss’ brain works.

Minho drops him off outside Junmyeon’s office, and for once he’s actually already there. “See you when this is over Jongdae.” Minho says, clapping Jongdae on the shoulder with a smile. It sounds far too ominous for a simple meeting to go over the progress of things half way through Jongdae’s contract. Maybe Minho’s just being overcautious.

Pulling the frosted glass door open, Jongdae smiles when he spots Chanyeol sitting across from Junmyeon, his back is to him but well, his ears are pretty obvious. “Chanyeol, Junmyeon.” Jongdae says, smiling as he nods to both of them, even if Chanyeol can’t see him. But his hackles are raised when Junmyeon doesn’t smile back. “What’s happened?”

“My kids.” Chanyeol deadpans, he still doesn’t rise from his seat to look at Jongdae. Those two words are enough to propel Jongdae across the room and into a seat adjacent to Chanyeol.

He’d not met Daseul or Seongjin properly but he’d caught glimpses of them in the back of the car when Chanyeol had dropped by his office to give him some paperwork. It’s enough to set his blood to a simmer at the prospect of anything involving them. “People are sayin’ they ain’t mine and stuff.” Chanyeol looks pained as he says it, but there’s no anger in his voice. Shoulders hunched and fingers fidgeting, he’s more sad than anything else. “Like me givin’ up my entire career isn’t enough to prove that they are.”

Junmyeon clears his throat. “It’s not good for our marketing strategy either Jongdae, interest for Chanyeol in certain projects, especially that drama deal with JTBC, is looking pretty shaky in the wake of the news.” Jongdae lays a hand on Chanyeol’s knee and looks over at Junmyeon.

“We can fix that Junmyeon, right now our priority is taking care of the idol and his kids. Interest is all well and good but if we don’t have anyone to fill the role then it’s useless right? So let’s get into damage control.” His voice takes on an edge he wasn’t expecting it to but the nod Junmyeon gives him permission to keep going. This time he turns to Chanyeol, squeezing his knee as he does. “Chanyeol-ah, you’ve got to show them they’re _your_ kids. That you’re a good dad, this is your family, own it.” Jongdae pauses, ducking his head until he’s forcing Chanyeol to meet his gaze. “Fuck those guys, okay?”

His final point earns him a little snort from Chanyeol, which Jongdae takes as a signal to keep going. “Now I know the knee-jerk thing right now is to just withdraw. But that’s givin’ them what they want. This is where you have to respond with strength.” As he talks, Chanyeol’s head slowly rises until he’s looking square at Junmyeon and then Jongdae.

“How am I gonna do that?”

“Return of the Superman. All those other fathers are only doing the stuff they’re doing because their wife is away. You do that shit all by yourself. Can’t do anything but make you look good and it’ll be great for the kids because they’ll get to do a bunch of stuff they don’t normally do.” Chanyeol’s nodding along but there’s some hesitation with the speed he’s nodding at. Jongdae decides to go for the final push. “I can be there Chanyeol, if you just want someone the kids can go to if it’s a bit much or you need someone to talk to. I’m pretty experienced in telling directors to back off.” A pause. “That’s what you learn working on film sets for your internships.” 

A hush falls over the room until _finally_ Chanyeol huffs, hand laying over Jongdae’s on his knee. “Thanks ‘Dae. It sounds like a good idea.” For the second their eyes lock, it feels like they’re the only ones in the room. Chanyeol turns to Junmyeon. “That should address all the shit with the marketing too right? If I’m on a reality show then people are gonna watch and probably check out a drama I’m in after right? Or are my nine years of experience wrong?” It’s easy to tell that the last question is meant to tease Junmyeon but Jongdae can still see his old friend is slightly cowed.

“I better get on the phone with JTBC then.” is Junmyeon’s only reaction.

-

KBS lept at the chance to have Chanyeol on their show. They didn’t even let Jongdae finish listing the conditions upon which he’d appear. They agreed to everything. Jongdae wishes he could say he was surprised but most places would do anything for an exclusive and/or first these days. There’s a lot to be said about getting the man who was once Korea’s Son to have his variety comeback on your show.

Still, even if there was an on the face of it agreement, contracts and everything had to be drawn up. Jongdae put an urgent on it with the threat that otherwise they’d move to another network. “Listen Mr Go, I really don’t mind what kind of snacks there are available on set, as far as I’m aware the twins don’t have any dietary requirements, I’m going to have to give you a call back on that one until I’ve had a chat with Mr Park about it.”

Mr Go is about half way through apologising for being too intrusive when Jongdae gets a tap on his shoulder. He starts but relaxes when he spots that it’s just Kyungsoo. But, Kyungsoo is tilting his head towards the door, where a significantly more lanky looking man is standing there, a little girl on his hip, a tray of drinks on one hand and a little boy standing at his feet. “Actually,” Jongdae pauses as he nods to Kyungsoo and rises out of his chair. “How about I just ask them right now? Stay on the line for a second Mr Go and I’ll get that confirmation for you.” Taking his phone away from his ear, Jongdae locks his gaze with Chanyeol. “Allergies?”

“I don’t have any, Daseul?”

 

“No, Daddy. Seongjin?” The little girl leans forward, doing some pretty impressive little kid’s gymnastics to get a good look at the top of her brother’s head.

Seongjin hesitates, looking up at Chanyeol for a second before turning to face Jongdae, which is some improvement, even if he’s still holding on to Chanyeol’s pant leg. “I don’t like carrot.” he says softly, enough that he has to repeat it just a little louder when Jongdae leans closer and cups his ear.

Jongdae nods solemnly, “No carrot for the big boy here.” He says into the receiver, nodding along as Mr Go recites the rest of the things they’d discussed. He pulls an apologetic face in the direction of Chanyeol only to be waved off in understanding as he ducks back to sit at his desk.

When he finally does get to hang up on the overly worried liaison, Chanyeol, Daseul, and Seongjin are still standing there, waiting for him. “What’s up guys? I get the feeling you didn’t just spidey sense me talking about catering for the show.”

“Daddy wanted to have afternoon tea with you!” Daseul announces, giggling at the groan Chanyeol lets out. Jongdae’s going to take a shot in the dark and say Chanyeol wanted that to be kept quiet.

As if he’s been summoned, Baekhyun sticks his head out from behind his computer monitor. “Afternoon tea? I want afternoon t-” He’s cut off by Kyungsoo punching him in the arm and growling at him to get back to work.

When Jongdae looks back from the chaos that is his coworkers, Daseul’s head is resting on Chanyeol’s shoulder and Chanyeol’s head in turn pressed to hers. “Did you want to come with me and the little tackers to grab a bite to eat? Junmyeon’s been telling me how much you’re flogging yourself from that. Don’t want you fainting on account of me.”

“Don’t want you fainting on account of me.” Baekhyun parrots back a little too loud.

“Shut up, we can all hear you Byun Baekhyun!” Jongdae calls out over his shoulder and smirks when he hears the inevitable whine Baekhyun gives when Kyungsoo calls him out on his shit. Refocusing his interest on Chanyeol, Daseul and Seongjin, his smile broadens considerably. “I’d love to. There’s a really nice café around the corner, I don’t know if you’ve heard of it Chanyeol but they have a really nice hot chocolate and a good quality latte.”

Catching the looks that both the kids were looking at him, Jongdae adds a bright “AND CAKE!” that earns him a couple of whoops from the children and one from Chanyeol that he’s definitely filing away for embarrassing stories later on.

-

It feels odd to be sitting in the same café he really had his first proper conversation with Chanyeol as a pair of twins practically bounce off every wall waiting for their babychino to arrive. But the again, Jongdae’s life hadn’t really been normal for a long while now. Which was just as well be he’s pretty sure he’d hate it if it was his new _normal_.

“You know, I didn’t actually ask you if you wanted to come and get coffee with me just for the sake of coffee.” Chanyeol admits, to which Jongdae has only one thing to say; duh.

Cutting off a slice of the chocolate cake Seongjin had sworn he didn’t like, he pops it into the little boy’s mouth. “I’ve been working with you for like five months Chanyeol.I know your coffee patterns and three in the afternoon is not one of them.” Jongdae points out, slicing another little bit of the cake for himself. His plan to put it into his mouth is however interrupted by a six year old girl taking up residence in his lap.He steers around her.

This is where Chanyeol gets nervous, does the same thing he’d done when he’d gone in to see Junmyeon 2 weeks ago. “I uh, was thinking that maybe you’d want to come to the shooting for RotS?” 

“Oh, like as a spectator?” Jongdae asks, finally getting his full mouthful of cake. He’s got to give Chanyeol a slice too. “Or was there something I can help with?”

This is where Chanyeol falls quiet and the two kids titter amongst themselves. “Uh, not really. I more wanted you there as like, not for work but I guess work because that’s your job but just uhhh.” It looks like he wants to have Jongdae guessing what the next word is, so of course Jongdae’s going to indulge him.

“Sorry Chanyeol, I’m not a qualified paediatrician so I couldn’t do anything to assist the twins or anything like that on set, if that’s what you're asking about.” Jongdae says, finding it fairly hard to keep a straight face a she watches the usual undercurrent of pinks come to the fore in Chanyeol’s cheeks.

Silence washes over them for a second before Chanyeol apparently decides to just be out with it. “I wanted to ask you on a date, I know that it’s kind of lame that it’s on set but I think it would be a good way to get to know each other. If you want that doesn’t gotta be the _actual_ date or anything I just wanted you there.” Jongdae doesn’t want to remind him that he would have been there anyway.

Seongjin and Daseul are sitting perfectly silent, even with chocolate smeared around their mouths. Jongdae watches the two of them for a second before looking up at their father. There’s something about the early afternoon sun and the way it shines that brings up the gentle wave of Chanyeol’s hair, points his ears just a little bit more and shadows him perfectly. He looks perfect like this, with Seongjin at his side, Jongdae feels no hesitation to say yes.

“You know, you wouldn’t be the first person to ask me to have our first date on a film set.” He explains before hooking an arm around Daseul and tickling her with the other hand. “Besides, you could definitely use with some help wrangling these little bundles of joy.”

“You’re really great Jongdae."

“I know.”


End file.
